Prince Charles leads Remembrance day

Prince Charles led the annual ceremony to honour Britain's war dead, laying a wreath on behalf of 91-year-old Queen Elizabeth to mark Remembrance Sunday as she watched the service from a balcony.

Breaking with her usual custom of placing the wreath at the Cenotaph on Whitehall in central London, the Queen asked her eldest son to take on the role, in part because of the demands of the ceremony for someone in their 90s.

A two-minute silence was held at 1100 (local time) and wreaths were laid at the foot of Britain's main war memorial by senior royals and political leaders including Prime Minister Theresa May and the leader of the main opposition Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn.

"It requires a certain amount of standing around and then it involves the queen carrying something quite heavy and walking backwards."

But he rejected the notion that it symbolised something more significant, saying it was "another step that we realise that we have an ageing monarch, and it's very important that we should not put too much pressure on her".

The head of state has been gradually reducing her workload and younger royals, including the 68-year-old Charles, have been taking up some of her duties.